scholarly journals Radial growth trends of loblolly pine in the Virginia Coastal Plain

1996 ◽  
Vol 26 (9) ◽  
pp. 1660-1669 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory A. Reams
Keyword(s):  
Loblolly Pine ◽  
Coastal Plain ◽  
Radial Growth ◽  
Ring Width ◽  
Growth Patterns ◽  
Age Classes ◽  
Individual Tree ◽  
Forest Inventory And Analysis ◽  
Growth Trends ◽  
Individual Tree Growth

A number of recent studies have shown reduced individual-tree growth throughout the 1970s and early 1980s in natural loblolly pine (Pinustaeda L.) stands in the southeastern United States. This study updates radial growth trends of loblolly pine in the Virginia Coastal Plain through 1989. Ring-width series were initially grouped into two age-classes (<50 or ≥50 years) and a clustering procedure was used to identify common radial growth patterns. These data suggest that radial growth trends of loblolly pine are cyclic and support previous findings of reduced growth in the 1970s. A reversal in trend has occurred since the early 1980s with radial growth increasing since then for both old and young trees. This change to increased growth corroborates the finding of increased growth of loblolly pine identified in the most current Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) survey cycle for the Virginia Coastal Plain.

Growth trends and stand dynamics in natural loblolly pine in the southeastern United States

1992 ◽  
Vol 22 (5) ◽  
pp. 660-666 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul C. Van Deusen
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Loblolly Pine ◽  
Tree Growth ◽  
Southeastern United States ◽  
Tree Age ◽  
Stand Age ◽  
Stand Dynamics ◽  
Individual Tree ◽  
Growth Trends ◽  
Individual Tree Growth

A number of recent studies have shown reduced stand-level and individual-tree growth in natural loblolly pine (Pinustaeda L.) stands in the southeastern United States. This study uses increment cores from dominant and codominant trees to determine if individual-tree growth has changed from 1915 to 1985. The cores are grouped for comparison by first sorting on the basis of median stand age and then further sorting these groups of cores by individual-tree age. These trees experienced increasing basal area increments from the mid-1940s into the mid-1970s, after which growth rates returned to preincrease levels. These data support recent findings of growth reductions, but also indicate previously unreported growth increases preceding the growth decreases. These and supplemental permanent plot data suggest that stand dynamics is a viable hypothesis for explaining these growth trends.

Removal of Competing Vegetation from Established Loblolly Pine Plantations Increases Growth on Piedmont and Upper Coastal Plain Sites

1996 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 188-193 ◽  
Author(s):  
James C. Fortson ◽  
Barry D. Shiver ◽  
Lois Shackelford
Keyword(s):  
Loblolly Pine ◽  
Coastal Plain ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Pine Plantations ◽  
Slope Position ◽  
Age Classes ◽  
Individual Tree ◽  
Competing Vegetation ◽  
Positive Treatment ◽  
The Individual

Abstract A series of paired plots was installed in loblolly pine plantations at 42 locations in Georgia's Piedmont and Alabama's Piedmont and Coastal Plain. One plot of each pair had all competing vegetation eliminated. The other plot was left as an uncontrolled check. Locations were stratified over two age classes (5-9 and 12-16 yr old) and three slope positions (top, midslope, and bottom). Analysis of 33 surviving locations 8 yr after treatment revealed a positive treatment effect for both individual tree (dbh and total height) and stand characteristics (basal area per acre, total volume per acre, and merchantable volume per acre). There was no difference in volume response between age classes. Slope position was not significant for the individual tree variables, but was significant for the stand variables, with midslopes responding most positively followed by bottom and then top slope positions. Over all locations, the average treatment response was approximately ½ cord/ac/yr. Economic analyses indicate that the magnitude of the response will be economical for many stumpage prices, particularly on midslope and bottom slope positions, in plantations where access and species composition make herbicide spraying possible. South J. Appl. For. 20(4):188-192.

Ring Width Patterns of Douglas Fir in Relation to Crown Vitality and Age

IAWA Journal ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ingrid de Kort ◽  
Pieter Baas
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Growth Performance ◽  
Radial Growth ◽  
Forest Decline ◽  
Ring Width ◽  
Douglas Fir ◽  
Age Classes ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Needle Loss

Ring width patterns often different stands, five vitality classes and three age-classes are used to explore the effect of the decline in vitality on radial growth of Douglas fir in the Netherlands and to determine the onset of this decline. A relationship between growth performance and crown vitality is found in most stands, although the variation within and between stands is large. Severe needle loss leads to serious decline in ring width. The onset of the decline varies from c. 1959 to 1976. The present data set does not enable a choice between the various causal scenarios of forest decline that have been proposed in the literature.

scholarly journals Radial Growth Patterns Associated with Tree Mortality in Nothofagus pumilio Forest

Forests ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 489 ◽  
Author(s):  
Milagros Rodríguez-Catón ◽  
Ricardo Villalba ◽  
Ana Srur ◽  
A. Park Williams
Keyword(s):  
Growth Rate ◽  
Growth Rates ◽  
Forest Dynamics ◽  
Radial Growth ◽  
Tree Mortality ◽  
Growth Patterns ◽  
Severe Drought ◽  
Nothofagus Pumilio ◽  
Total Size ◽  
Growth Trends

Tree mortality is a key process in forest dynamics. Despite decades of effort to understand this process, many uncertainties remain. South American broadleaf species are particularly under-represented in global studies on mortality and forest dynamics. We sampled monospecific broadleaf Nothofagus pumilio forests in northern Patagonia to predict tree mortality based on stem growth. Live or dead conditions in N. pumilio trees can be predicted with high accuracy using growth rate as an explanatory variable in logistic models. In Paso Córdova (CO), Argentina, where the models were calibrated, the probability of death was a strong negative function of radial growth, particularly during the six years prior to death. In addition, negative growth trends during 30 to 45 years prior to death increased the accuracy of the models. The CO site was affected by an extreme drought during the summer 1978–1979, triggering negative trends in radial growth of many trees. Individuals showing below-average and persistent negative trends in radial growth are more likely to die than those showing high growth rates and positive growth trends in recent decades, indicating the key role of droughts in inducing mortality. The models calibrated at the CO site showed high verification skill by accurately predicting tree mortality at two independent sites 76 and 141 km away. Models based on relative growth rates showed the highest and most balanced accuracy for both live and dead individuals. Thus, the death of individuals across different N. pumilio sites was largely determined by the growth rate relative to the total size of the individuals. Our findings highlight episodic severe drought as a triggering mechanism for growth decline and eventual death for N. pumilio, similar to results found previously for several other species around the globe. In the coming decades, many forests globally will be exposed to more frequent and/or severe episodes of reduced warm-season soil moisture. Tree-ring studies such as this one can aid prediction of future changes in forest productivity, mortality, and composition.

Tree-ring model interprets growth decline in natural stands of loblolly pine in the southeastern United States

1989 ◽  
Vol 19 (5) ◽  
pp. 612-621 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Zahner ◽  
Joseph R. Saucier ◽  
Richard K. Myers
Keyword(s):  
Tree Ring ◽  
Loblolly Pine ◽  
Radial Growth ◽  
Ring Width ◽  
Stand Density ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Radial Increment ◽  
Aggregate Model ◽  
Ring Model ◽  
Pine Stands

Annual ring widths and ring areas from 131 even-aged, natural, well-stocked stands of loblolly pine (Pinustaeda L.) in the Piedmont region were analyzed to reveal possible causes of a previously reported decline in radial growth. A linear aggregate model was used to separate independent factors that are known to contribute to radial growth variation in this species. Stand, site, and climatic conditions were reconstructed for each stand for the 36-year period 1949–1984 from previous inventories and from weather records at appropriately located stations. Within each of six 5-year age-classes, the model identified declines in both ring width and ring area associated with stand density, climate changes, and the passage of time. Regional climate first ameliorated this decline as pine stands passed from droughty conditions early in the 36-year period to a favorable climate during the middle of the period, and the decline accelerated later with the return of dry conditions toward the end of the period. The tree-ring model simulates a decline in radial increment in trees in natural pine stands between the ages of 20 and 45 years in the Piedmont which has averaged 1% per year since 1950. Part of the downward trend was attributed to increased competition, part to regional drought, and a considerable part to unidentified factors, possibly regional atmospheric deposition.

Changes in site productivity and the recovery of soil properties following wet- and dry-weather harvesting disturbances in the Atlantic Coastal Plain for a stand of age 10 years

2007 ◽  
Vol 37 (8) ◽  
pp. 1336-1348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark H. Eisenbies ◽  
James A. Burger ◽  
W. Michael Aust ◽  
Steven C. Patterson
Keyword(s):  
South Carolina ◽  
Loblolly Pine ◽  
Coastal Plain ◽  
Tree Height ◽  
Site Preparation ◽  
Atlantic Coastal Plain ◽  
Site Productivity ◽  
Individual Tree ◽  
Wet Weather ◽  
Wet Pine Flats

Wet-weather logging can cause severe soil physical disturbances and redistribute residues. Although some research indicates negative effects of such disturbances on individual tree growth, the long-term resilience and resistance of soils and the ameliorative effects of site preparation are not fully understood. Three 20 ha loblolly pine ( Pinus taeda L.) plantations located on fertile wet pine flats on the coastal plain of South Carolina were subjected to five treatment combinations of harvest (wet and dry) and site preparation. Mean tree heights were 10.2–11.5 m, and stand biomass ranged between 95 and 143 Mg/ha. A rank diagnostic indicates that wet-weather harvesting did not significantly change site productivity between rotations, and bedding improved site productivity. At the polypedon scale (0.04 ha), there were no significant differences in tree height, biomass, or the rank diagnostic among classes of soil physical disturbances or harvesting residues when bedding was employed. On nonbedded sites, some levels of disturbance appeared to be superior to minimally disturbed sites. Based on 10 year results, wet pine flats are apparently resistant and resilient to the effects of wet-weather harvesting.

Thinning and Fertilizing Southern Pine Stands of the Lower Coastal Plain: Biological and Economic Effects

1992 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 186-193 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen C. Stearns-Smith ◽  
Eric J. Jokela ◽  
Robert C. Abt
Keyword(s):  
Loblolly Pine ◽  
Coastal Plain ◽  
Cost Of Capital ◽  
Volume Growth ◽  
Pinus Elliottii ◽  
Economic Effects ◽  
Individual Tree ◽  
Stand Volume ◽  
Volume Production ◽  
Lower Coastal Plain

Abstract The interaction between thinning and fertilization (nitrogen and phosphorus) was investigated in seven slash pine (Pinus elliottii Engelm. var. elliottii) plantations and one natural loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) stand in the lower Coastal Plain of the southeastern United States. Thestands ranged in age from 14-20 years when the 2² factorial (thinning X fertilization) experiments were installed. Significant thinning X fertilization interactions occurred on five tests, but the nature of the interactions was inconsistent. Fertilization responses remained significant8 years after treatment and averaged 35 ft³/ac/yr. Fertilization increased stand volume production in the chip-n-saw product class more frequently than thinning. After 8 years, thinning increased individual tree volume growth by 0.50-3.05 ft³/tree over the controls; however, thinninggenerally decreased both total stand and chip-n-saw volumes at final harvest. Economic effects were examined by determining soil expectation values (SEV) for each thinning and fertilization treatment combination for various rotation lengths using uniform economic assumptions. The treatmentcombination that maximized stand volume production was not always the best financial choice. The increased growth rates due to thinning, fertilization, or both tended to extend the optimal rotation. A 4% real cost of capital with harvest merchandizing of pulpwood and chip-n-saw product classeseconomically favored fertilization over the other treatments. However, increasing the cost of capital (6% real) or merchandizing solely for pulpwood put fertilization at a relative disadvantage. South. J. Appl. For. 16(4):186-193

scholarly journals I. Early Loblolly Pine Stand Response to Tillage on the Piedmont and Upper Coastal Plain of Georgia: Mortality, Stand Uniformity, and Second and Third Year Growth

2002 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 181-189 ◽  
Author(s):  
R.E. Will ◽  
M.J. Wheeler ◽  
D. Markewitz ◽  
M.A. Jacobson ◽  
A.M. Shirley
Keyword(s):  
Loblolly Pine ◽  
Coastal Plain ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
Tree Size ◽  
Soil Tillage ◽  
Volume Index ◽  
Soil Series ◽  
Individual Tree ◽  
The Third ◽  
No Till

Abstract The effects of machine planting, disking, bedding, and bedding + subsoiling on growth of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) were assessed after two and three growing seasons for seven contrasting sites on the Piedmont and Upper Coastal Plain of Georgia. Heights and groundline diameters of half the trees (50 trees) per plot, percent mortality, individual tree volume index (D2H), stand uniformity, and per hectare volume index were compared across sites and treatments. Average tree size of the treatments were ranked (from largest to smallest) bed, bed + subsoil, disk, machine, and no-till. At the end of the third growing season, the trees in the bed only treatment had a mean height, groundline diameter, and volume index of 2.3 m ± 0.06 SE, 59 mm ± 1.7 SE, and 0.0094 m3 ± 0.00066 SE, respectively. The trees of the no-till treatment had a mean height, groundline diameter, and volume index of 2.1 m ± 0.07 SE, 50 mm ± 1.6 SE, and 0.0063 3 ± 0.00056 SE, respectively. Overall, the disk, bed, and bed + subsoil treatment plots had significantly greater absolute volume growth during the third growing season than the no-till and machine plots. Most of the tree mortality within all treatments occurred during the first growing season with the disk treatment having the least mortality (13.6%) and the no-till treatment the most (24.9%). Stand height and diameter uniformity, examined using the within plot coefficient of variation, was not significantly different among treatments. Per hectare volume index was significantly greater for the bed (7.0 m3/ha) and bed + subsoil treatments (7.1 m3/ha) than for the no-till (4.5 m3/ha) and machine (5.2 m3/ha) treatments. Significant differences occurred between sites for tree size parameters, ranging between 2.7 m mean height and 64 mm mean groundline diameter for a site on a Cowarts soil series to 1.8 m mean height and 45 mm mean groundline diameter for trees growing on a Pacolet soil series. Significant interactions between tillage treatments and sites occurred for some tree size parameters at age 2, but not age 3, and for average plot mortality rate. The results of this study indicate that some early gains in tree growth can be achieved through soil tillage on upland sites. Bedding provided the most consistent, positive response, but adding subsoiling to bedding provided no benefit. Overall, the gains were relatively small and site dependent. Tillage on these Piedmont and Upper Coastal Plain soils should best be considered as part of a complete management program that includes to weed control and fertilization. South. J. Appl. For. 26(4):181–189.

A new method for evaluating forest thinning: growth dominance in managed Pinus resinosa stands

2010 ◽  
Vol 40 (5) ◽  
pp. 843-849 ◽  
Author(s):  
John B. Bradford ◽  
Anthony W. D’Amato ◽  
Brian J. Palik ◽  
Shawn Fraver
Keyword(s):  
Tree Growth ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Pinus Resinosa ◽  
Growth Patterns ◽  
Red Pine ◽  
New Method ◽  
Stand Age ◽  
Individual Tree ◽  
Individual Tree Growth

Growth dominance is a relatively new, simple, quantitative metric of within-stand individual tree growth patterns, and is defined as positive when larger trees in the stand display proportionally greater growth than smaller trees, and negative when smaller trees display proportionally greater growth than larger trees. We examined long-term silvicultural experiments in red pine ( Pinus resinosa Ait.) to characterize how stand age, thinning treatments (thinned from above, below, or both), and stocking levels (residual basal area) influence stand-level growth dominance through time. In stands thinned from below or from both above and below, growth dominance was not significantly different from zero at any age or stocking level. Growth dominance in stands thinned from above trended from negative at low stocking levels to positive at high stocking levels and was positive in young stands. Growth dominance in unthinned stands was positive and increased with age. These results suggest that growth dominance provides a useful tool for assessing the efficacy of thinning treatments designed to reduce competition between trees and promote high levels of productivity across a population, particularly among crop trees.

An individual-tree basal area growth model for loblolly pine stands

1996 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 327-331 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul A. Murphy ◽  
Michael G. Shelton
Keyword(s):  
Loblolly Pine ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Growth Function ◽  
Logistic Function ◽  
Growth Patterns ◽  
Potential Growth ◽  
Individual Tree ◽  
Basal Area Growth ◽  
Area Growth ◽  
Using Data

Tree basal area growth has been modeled as a combination of a potential growth function and a modifier function, in which the potential function is fitted separately from open-grown tree data or a subset of the data and the modifier function includes stand and site variables. We propose a modification of this by simultaneously fitting both a growth component and a modifier component. The growth component can be any function that approximates tree growth patterns, and the logistic function is chosen as the modifier component. This approach can be adapted to a variety of stand conditions, and its application is demonstrated using data from an uneven-aged loblolly pine (Pinustaeda L.) study located in Arkansas and Louisiana.

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